Black on Black
by Chick Feed
Summary: My own short addition to the Season 14 final ep. Spoiler Alert! - NEWLY EXTENDED.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer : I've waited patiently for years, but still they're not mine and time's running out :(  
**SPOILER ALERT** : Whole of fic ties into **S14, **primarily** Ep20**

**BLACK ON BLACK  
**-oOo-

Dean's final thought was _'Hear this Chuckie. I know you. You're nothin'! Just a twisted little nut-job, another pointless monster an' in case you forgot, I kill monsters.' _Sam's was more practical_; 'Should'a gone for the head shot.' _Castiel had, in the past, been content in his Heavenly role as 'An angel of the Lord'. He had kept his faith in his God even when his brothers and sisters abandoned theirs. In that final moment however, he was beyond comprehensible thought, too deeply immersed within a raging furnace of anger, bitterness and grief that blasted through his body, and left his heart feeling like a hunk of white hot lava that was about to sear its way out of his chest. The final moment for all three came courtesy of Chuck who, during a somewhat surreal Divine Diva tantrum, utilised his Godly powers to call up an ending for the angel and the Winchester brothers that was both savage and barbaric in the extreme. When it was over and done, what little evidence there was of the atrocity which had taken place bore no resemblance to the mortal remains of the three men

-oOo-

The soul that was Dean Winchester shaped itself into the familiar form that it knew from life. Fighting to open his eyes fully, Dean wondered how the Hell he'd ended up on the wrong end of being drowned in thick, black molasses? Confused, he wracked his brain, trying to recall what monster he was up against? What he set free was the memory of that last stand. It hammered into him like a lightning strike, causing his whole ethereal body to jump and jerk. Instantly, he felt the viscous tar-like substance tighten it's grip on him, seemingly with an increased determination to hold him down. '_Right, no solid monster then, just this damn gloop. Ok. I got this. No way I'm gonna lose to a freakin' dollop of gunked up jello.' _He readied himself to push against the heavy, congealed substance, hoping he was facing the direction that would lead him to the surface, rather than even deeper into the quagmire.

At the first flex of his muscles, something solid bumped him. Dean froze and his imagination immediately threw him the title 'MEGAJAWSHARK TREACLE..._It Will_ _Stick With You!_' He was bumped again, but this time the thing clamped his left calf in it's, _'Toothless?',_ jaws and began pulling on him; in Dean's mind trying to drag him down deeper before snacking on his leg. Afraid of what he couldn't see, Dean fought back with his whole body, every twitch and strain occurring in ultra slow motion, his movements hindered by the gelatinous ichor surrounding him and, in the black, a second treacle shark clamped down on his other calf. Stomach churning sucking and slurping sounds accompanied the terrified Hunter's slow, unwilling, and yet inexorable journey deeper, (he assumed), into the mire.

The arteries in Sam's neck bulged in response to the physical effort he was expending and he ground out through gritted teeth  
"Give'imupyoustinkin'stenchin'freakin'mudbath. He's _mine_!"  
Sam's body formed almost a forty-five degree angle with the fairly solid area under his feet as he leaned away from the opposing pull of the black, dense semi-liquid he had earlier plunged an arm into, right up to his shoulder. Given that he and his brother died next to one another, he'd figured that Dean should still be somewhere close by. Even so, it took a number of attempts before his exploring fingers touched something solid. Grabbing hold of it, Sam could only hope that what he gripped was part of his brother. Now, turning his head to one side, he reached into the turbid gloop with his other arm' and, after a short time, caught hold of something else solid. Despite the uncertainty surrounding who, or what, he had found, Sam never-the-less dug his heels in, determined to continue to battle against the hold that the putrid, gluey syrup had on whatever it was he desperately clung onto.

His efforts were at last rewarded by the sight of the soles of Dean's boots. His older brother's feet began to kick and tug against Sam's hold as soon as they were free of the strange swamp. Cursing, Sam tightened his grip and, with one finger, began tapping out '_It's me_' against Dean's ankle using old fashioned Morse-Code, something John Winchester had insisted they both learn. It made no difference and Dean continued fighting against Sam with his feet..  
"_Dammit Dean, you jerk_! Calm down an' get the message will you?"  
Sam again tapped firmly against his brother's ankle and this time there was a momentary pause before Dean started wriggling and kicking again.  
"Really? Need it in triplicate do you? Fine. No problem bro'."  
His message was at last received and understood, meaning Sam was finally no longer in danger of a boot to the jaw. Taking a deep preparatory breath; he expelling it again in surprise when his right hand was gently covered by the hand of another.  
"Let me help you Sam."

Knowing his brother was with him waylaid much of Dean's fear and anxiety. Stopping his struggling, he relaxed his body and patiently waited for Sam to rescue him. He anticipated that the process of dragging his body upwards, fighting against the pull of the cloying black soup, would be painfully slow. His unexpectedly rapid ascent through the gloop, therefore, came as a sudden shock to him.

Sam heaved a gasping, spluttering Dean onto the more solid area of gleaming jet black, an area Sam could only think of as _'The shore'. _For a while he could only stand back helplessly and watch while his brother coughed, gurgled and puked up thick globules of the black stuff from his lungs and throat. He'd already experienced the grossly unpleasant process for himself after dragging himself onto the shore. Unlike Dean, Sam had been comparatively lucky, coming round only partially submerged. Even so, it had been a hard fought battle to free himself. There was no way Dean could have managed to free himself alone.

At last done vomiting, Dean lie panting face down on a surface that felt and moved like sand left wet by the receding tide; only this beach was coloured deepest black. A swift bleary eyed glance around showed him nothing _but _black, as though he and his brother were deep within a cave where no light could reach. He tensed, then relaxed again when the weight of a familiar hand landed in the middle of his back, the action closely followed by Sam's concerned voice.  
"Dean? You ok man? Can you stand? You need help up bro'?"  
"Nah. S'ok. M'good."

Carefully sitting up on the bizarrely shifting ground Dean gazed down at himself, his brow scrunching into a puzzled frown.  
"Huh? Look at me Sammy. I should be covered all over in freakin' black soup, right? So how come I'm not? There's nothin'! Nada!"  
Sam gave a small smile  
"Be grateful. Oh, an' welcome to The Empty."  
A second voice echoed Sam's words.  
"Yes Dean. Welcome to The Empty. You should know I _am_ very sorry that you and Sam are dead but, I'm also happy not to be here on my own.

Cold green eyes narrowed angrily as Dean turned to look in the direction of the subdued voice that belonged to Jack. Getting unsteadily to his feet, Dean gravely considered the youth in silence before finally responding to the powerful half archangel, half human boy in a measured tone, wanting to ensure Jack heard and understood his every word..  
"Listen up kid, see _I'm_ sorry I didn't do what I should'a. I'm sorry I didn't go ahead an' finish you...'Cos if f I _had _pulled the trigger?Sammy here might not be stuck in this freakin' dump right now. If I'd taken the shot? My _brother _might just still be alive; so you'll excuse me if I don't turn out to be the cheery kinda company you're hopin' for."  
With that, Dean dismissively turned his back on Jack. Dismayed, Sam started to protest. "_Dean!_ That's not..."  
The older Hunter's warning glance was cold enough to cut Sam short. Dean's expression making it very plain he had no wish to hear what the younger Hunter had to say right then and no intention of making amends with Jack.

Sam watched while his older brother carried out a more thorough visual scan of their environment. Much to Sam's embarrassment, Dean's eyes then travelled slowly over Sam himself.  
"Dude! What're you doing? It's creepy."  
"'Consider this brother of mine, I can see you. Don't you think it's kinda odd? I mean; look around Sam. Where's the light source?"  
Sam's eyebrows raised in surprise. The question hadn't occurred to him, but Dean was right. Stood on black, entirely surrounded by black, how _could _they see one another so clearly? He turned to Jack who, since Dean's speech, had remained quietly stood a few feet away, his expression one of sadness, his arms behind his back. The youth merely shrugged his shoulders, leaving Sam uncertain whether Jack actually didn't know the answer, or whether he simply wasn't saying.

Dean's attention had returned to their surroundings and he tentatively took a few steps away from Sam. Coming to a standstill, he shook his head in disbelief.  
"There's nothin' Sam...Nothin' at all to see. There's no kinda horizon, no sense of scale, just...Black... Everywhere!"  
Sam's voice held more than a hint of sarcasm.  
"Yeah, I'd sorta noticed that...Hey! You think maybe that's why they call this place The Empty?"  
Dean half smiled.  
"Could be Sherlock. Although I guess they gotta re-name it now bro', 'cos it sure as Hell ain't empty no more. An' speakin' of...Hey you, _Jack__._"

The young man Dean addressed so sharply was an individual far superior to any mere super-human, real or imagined. His powers went far beyond those of some comic book alien guardian of Earth hero. This youngster was something else entirely. A rarity, an offence in the eyes of Heaven's angels, he was a Nephilim and, for an added kick, he was the son of Lucifer himself. Despite this, Sam wasn't in the least surprised to see Jack flinch at Dean calling his name. Dean often had that effect on people, and other things.  
"Yes Dean?"  
"Where is he? _Where's Cas_?"

The young Nephilim broke into a sweet smile. He knew the answer to this one! Dean would be pleased with him.  
"Castiel wasn't happy, so he's not here."  
Annoyed, irritated, Dean pointedly stepped closer to Jack. The youth's smile was replaced by a look of confusion. _'He should be more smiley now, why isn't he?'  
_"Guess what? _I_ ain't exactly ecstatic 'bout bein' here _either_ but, here I am, an' this whole mess is _really _startin' to freakin' piss me off. I'm gonna ask you again, an' I'd like it if you were a bit more specific this time. Ok? So, _wh__ere...is...Castiel_?"

Watching the youth shuffle his feet uncomfortably and seeing him frown thoughtfully, Sam quickly moved to stand in front of his brother and face Jack himself, determined to keep the situation calm, very aware how dangerous it could be to both himself and Dean if they found themselves in the vicinity of an angry Nephilim .  
"Jack? Hey, listen. We get that you might not know where Cas is, an' honestly, that's ok. _Right _Dean?"  
Catching the warning tone in Sam's voice Dean took a calming breath as he reluctantly forced himself to ease off. He casually moved to stand at his younger brother's side and kept his expression carefully neutral.  
"Um, yeah, that's right. You just say so if you don't know where he is. It's cool."  
Jack's voice was a mumble and he gazed at the two brothers oddly guiltily, but Sam was relieved to see the frown gone.  
"I'm sorry. I really _don't _know where Castiel is. I really wish I _did_ know, then I would tell you. But I don't, so I can't; but...There...There _is_ something, only I promised...I _promised_ him and you're supposed to keep promises...?"

With a swift glance at Dean, Sam moved closer to Jack and put an arm around the distressed youth's shoulders. Jack responded to the touch immediately by leaning into Sam's side.  
"Jack, sometimes breaking a promise is the right thing to do, like if keeping the promise means somebody might be in danger an' need saving. You understand? If you know something about Cas, telling us what that is could help us all to figure out whether he's in danger or if he's possibly all alone somewhere else in The Empty. Breaking the promise you made Cas might even help us all find a way out, an' you know Castiel wouldn't want us to be stuck here. Right?"  
Smiling again, pleased to have the chance to do the right thing, Jack nodded his understanding. He relayed everything he remembered about The Empty's appearance in physical form, and the resulting deal that was struck between it and Castiel.

Listening in stunned disbelief, Dean bit down hard on his impulse to curse and shout out loud his fury and frustration, forcing himself to keep his feelings inside, for now.  
"_Sonovabitch!_ _Again? A freakin' dumb-assed deal? We've still not learned? I swear, it's gotta be easier to teach a freakin' pig to play guitar! I'm sick an' tired of it. Chrissake, all I wanna do is sleep!"_

Behind the furious Hunter, black on black, something silently began to shape itself.

**END  
**-oOo-**  
**_**Thank you for taking the time to read. Chick xxxxx**_


	2. Chapter 2 Chuck and Amara

**Black on Black – Chapter 2  
**_Chuck and Amara  
__-oOo-_

God sat himself down on a tree stump and gazed around feeling distinctly dissatisfied. He'd just conjured up a good Old Testament killing spree, in which one of His angel warriors was offed, a young nephelim who was sort of His grandson, and the two most infamous Hunters around, the Winchester brothers. And now it all felt like a serious anti-climax. He knew what the problem was of course, (that's the joy of being 'all knowing'). It was the lack of witnesses to the thing, the lack of audience appreciation. No 'Oooo's and 'Ahhh's of awe in response to His show of divinity. (Chuck always used the capital 'H' when referring to or thinking about Himself, it was only right and proper given His Almighty God status). No masses falling to their knees in abject adoration, or giving thanks for His wisdom in wiping out the nephelim and coming up with such a creative way to rid humanities paltry lives of three ingrates.  
"_I_ saw."  
Chuck turned towards the voice that had interrupted His ponderings.  
"Sorry?"  
"I said _I _saw. _I_ bore witness to your actions little brother."  
Chuck turned away again with a shrug.  
"Course you did, you're All Seeing too. So you don't really count."

Amara strolled over to stand at her brother's side.  
From the time they were first reunited, as she and Chuck grew closer they had found themselves becoming linked into one another's thoughts. Initially they both liked the fact that there were no secrets between them and enjoyed the new sensation of being connected to someone, never alone or lonely. However, eventually both felt they risked becoming so enmeshed that they were in danger of becoming a single entity inhabiting two bodies. The answer was to each develop the ability to switch the link between their two minds to 'mute' if either or both of them wished to, and Amara had good reason to want to keep her thoughts to herself on this occasion.

While she watched her sibling end the lives of the four individuals, she had found herself feeling ill at ease with his behaviour; especially in relation to Dean Winchester. Ironic really, given how many innocent humans she herself had happily and so easily slaughtered in the past. Her eyes sadly scanned the tragic scene before her. She couldn't help wondering which fragments of the few remains had once been a part of Dean? She placed a hand tentatively on her temperamental sibling's shoulder.  
"You know, you _could_ resurrect them all and wait till you're somewhere with lots of witnesses then kill them again brother. What do you think?"  
She waited hopefully while Chuck considered her suggestion for a short period, the hope dissipating when her brother shook his head and stood up.  
"No. Setting it up a second time wouldn't be as satisfying, it'd feel too rehearsed. The air of spontaneity would be gone."  
"Of course, I understand my dear."

For a while the pair walked in silence amongst the trees, until Chuck grasped her arm and brought them both to a halt. He made an intense study of his sister's face before speaking.  
"Amara? Beloved sister of mine; how come you've silenced your thoughts from me?"  
Amara took both chuck's hands in hers and smiled at him.  
"Actually, I pulled back in order to allow you some privacy brother. I know you've been overseeing the Winchesters all their lives, and Castiel was your warrior who, you told me, kept his faith in you when the others didn't. As for the Nephilim, you once favoured his father above all others. Now you've killed them all, I thought you might want to be alone with your thoughts for a time?"

Chuck's smile wasn't fully reflected in his eyes.  
"My beautiful sister, so thoughtful and considerate. I just need to correct you on one little, teeny, _miniscule _even, detail...Can't deny I killed the boy but, a _Nephilim_ Amara! Never have We suffered such things to live. _I _didn't lay a hand on either the Winchesters _or_ Castiel though. _They_ died at the hands of those abominable creatures."  
Amara frowned.  
"Which came because you willed them to and with only one purpose, little brother. You _are_ guilty of killing the Hunters and your angel; the creatures were simply your weapon."

Chuck pulled away from his sister.  
"Am I being put on trial here? Should I submit My defence? Should I speak to my lawyer?"  
Amara laughed off her brother's irritation.  
"Of course not my dear."  
Chuck began walking again, his pace increased by his annoyance.  
"Good."

Catching up with Him, Amara matched his pace.  
"But I'm curious...If you _were_ being tried? What would your defence be?"  
"Alright, fine, if you insist...The case would be summarily dismissed. I, Almighty God, gave the humans and the Angel a test, I gave them an enemy to fight, they might've won, but they lost. Test failed. Case dismissed."

It was a good while before Amara allowed Chuck to share her thoughts again, wanting to give herself time to consider whether she should rescue Dean? And the other two of course. Later, when Chuck asked why her thoughts were still silent to Him? She feigned surprise and apologised for being so forgetful before letting Chuck in again. She didn't need the barrier anymore anyway, her decision had been made. She didn't need to think about it anymore right now.

END  
-oOo-  
Chick xxxxx


End file.
